What It Really Takes To Look Like A Fitness Model

We've spoken to Vince del Monte about what it takes to get the body of a fitness model, and now here's another point of view from Manning Sumner. If you thought it was all pumping iron at the gym, you're wrong. Diet has a lot to do with it, and so, you'll be thrilled to learn, does Preparation H.

Give our readers a sense of how difficult it is to get into sufficiently good shape to model.

Getting in shape to be a model is a serious task and shouldn’t be taken lightly. You have to eat a certain way all the time and live a very active lifestyle. To be brutally honest, you really can’t take any days off in order to get into good shape to be a fitness model. My experience as a model is actually where I originally came up with the concept for my fitness and diet regimen called No Days Off. This philosophy is something that I preach to my clients at my fitness facility, Legacy Fit, on a daily basis. You can’t take any days off if you are actively trying to change your body and get into shape.

Your diet and fitness routine needs to become a lifestyle — something you do every single day. This is a very difficult lifestyle where you need to stay committed, dedicated and cannot cheat. This isn’t a diet that allows for a “Sunday cheat day.” You need to weigh yourself on a daily basis along with doing cardio and resistance training. Models are required to be a certain size and have a certain body type. It really is a challenge to get to that point and maintain it. You need to be conscious of your diet and keep up your fitness every day.

Give our readers some insight into how professional fitness models get in shape — tips they can apply to their own diets and fitness regimens.

Professional fitness models get in shape first and foremost by living a very active lifestyle, which includes working out every day. To start you should do one hour of moderate cardio, like walking, riding the bike or the elliptical, first thing in the morning on an empty stomach every day. This should be done in combination with resistance training four to five days a week for about 40 minutes per day.

Your diet should be very clean and healthy. You should avoid all carbs except for brown rice, sweet potato and oatmeal. Be sure to eat only lean protein, including chicken breast, steak, turkey breast and fish. Eat a lot of green vegetables, and the only fruits you should eat are green apples. A lot fruits that most people think are healthy or “good for them” are actually very high in sugar. Green apples are high in fiber, low glycemic and make you feel full. This is a great snacking food! You should eat every three hours and stick to that schedule. You don’t want to starve yourself and never want to go four hours without eating, unless you are asleep. The key to dieting is to eat small portions every three hours and never eat until you’re full. Only eat until you’re satisfied. A lot of models make the mistake of starving themselves because they think this will help them lose weight faster. This is a common misconception. Also, it is important to have your last meal of the day four hours before you go to sleep. You never want to eat right before going to bed.

A good tip to keep in mind is to drink two gallons of distilled water a day. Distilled water is a natural diuretic and helps you get rid of toxins, which are stored in your fat. This will help you get rid of fat faster! The perfect combination of dieting and fitness is key to becoming a fitness model.

Give our readers some insight into the artificial elements of the process — the pre-shoot tricks, the post-shoot Photoshopping.

Preparing for the photoshoot is often very nerve-wracking, and models are always looking for new ways to beat the system.

A good pre-shoot trick is to rub Preparation H on your stomach. This will help pull water out of your skin. After you cover your stomach with Preparation H, hit the sauna for 20 minutes wearing a sweatsuit. You should do this weeks before the photoshoot and stop about 2-3 days before the shoot; otherwise, you will retain water. A lot of people don’t know this and think they should do this the day of or the day before the shoot. Also, putting Preparation H underneath your eyes helps get rid of puffiness or swelling.